With the launch of Safari 6.0 for OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion and the release of a 6.0 update for existing Safari users on OS 10.7 Lion, Apple appears to have shelved efforts to continue developing Safari for Windows.

The previous version of Safari 5.1.7 for Windows is still available for download on a special support page, but all mention of a PC version of the web browser have been scrubbed from the company's main website.

Searching for "Safari" from Apple's website currently brings up the former headline in the Quick Search results (shown below), saying, "Safari for Mac + PC. The fastest easiest-to-use browser in the world, now available for Mac + PC."

However, when you arrive at the apple.com/safari page it directs you to, there's only information on the latest 6.0 version of Safari, highlighting features unique to the new version, including its unified Smart Search field, Tab View, iCloud Tabs, Sharing, Offline Reading List, and improvements for Chinese users, none of which are available in the existing Windows version.

At the bottom of the page, Apple notes, "the latest version of Safari is available in Mountain Lion. The latest version of Safari for Lion is available through Software Update." There is no longer any direct download link supplied for Safari 6.0, although Apple's site continues to list download links of Safari Extensions.

Apple focuses on Safari for OS X, iOS

Apple's Steve Jobs first announced Windows PC support in Safari 3.0 at Macworld Expo in 2007. The primary goal of that new version was to push the adoption of modern, standards-based browsing by making Safari's WebKit browser widely available as an alternate to Microsoft's Internet Explorer and Mozilla's Firefox (originally Phoenix) browser built on the ashes of Netscape.

However, while adoption of Safari among PC users has been limited, Google's free Chrome browser, based on the same WebKit engine as Safari, has achieved wide distribution, virtually erasing the need for Apple to develop and support its own browser for Windows.

Additionally, Apple's subsequent success with iOS, paired with the nearly unanimous use of WebKit by other mobile platform vendors (including Nokia, RIM, Palm, Google and others) has effectively made WebKit the only significant mobile web browser engine.

By terminating support for the Windows platform, Apple can focus on the development of features unique to its own platforms, as represented by many of the unique features in Safari 6.0. Apple is still supporting continued, open development of WebKit on a variety of different platforms.

Downloads for other Windows software, including iTunes, QuickTime and Bonjour printer support, are still available and do not appear to have changed. Some Apple web pages, including the QuickTime page for Windows downloads, still link to "Safari for Mac + PC," but those links all now direct to information that only applies to Mac and iOS devices.

Its better this way. I wouldnt use Safari on Windows. Although- if you HAVE to work on a Windows PC at an office- it wouldve been nice to have bookmarks, reading lists, open pages, etc. sync with iOS6 as well as other Lion/Mountain Lion computers you have at home.

I'm another person that is forced to use Windows at work. I only use IE when I ***absolutely*** have to.

The rest of the time I use Safari for Windows.

When that doesn't work I use Firefox.

When that doesn't work I use Chrome.

When that doesn't work I use IE.

I really don't want to remove Safari from the list. The rest don't have the fonts that I'm very used to and want to keep. Yes I could figure out mostly how to get the same fonts and look in Firefox (or another browser) but I'm hoping that I don't have to. I hope Apple just doesn't have Safari 6 for Windows ready yet and so they are hiding all versions.

I also know that I could get used to Firefox or Chrome (but never IE which is worse than the idea of dating your own sister or brother - no thanks) if I use them enough. Again, I like the brand I like. I don't want to use another brand until it is *** MY *** choice to switch.
PS: I do have my Retina iPad with me at work. I do use it (along with my Apple bluetooth keyboard that I use with my iPad) sometimes but with five 24" monitors, well one dedicated to Safari (MOSTly for work related work) it is a lot easier to read than the smaller iPad screen. But if pushed and shoved off Safari on Windows I'm more likely to do more of my browsing, even work related things, on my iPad.

Yeah I agree. It's not bloated and runs very fast. Probably would be ok to use for awhile. Thinking about this, it probably has something to do with the Windows 8 disaster. Why would they want to support that for RT and Win8?

Indeed. On the hand, Google Chrome is probably a suitable alternative if this is indeed the case, since it is also Webkit based.

That's the way I see it, too. When Safari for Windows was released WebKit simply wasn't the powerhouse it is today. On top of that I seem to recall Apple moving iTunes from using a Java-based iTunes Store to using a WebKit-based store so having the framework tested on Windows was necessary. At this point WebKit is the more commonly installed browser engine in the world and Apple's Safari has made it to people who still only use Windows and IE on their desktop because of the prevalence of iOS devices. While I can see why they might keep it the drive is severely diminished at this point.

This bot has been removed from circulation due to a malfunctioning morality chip.

about time they give up with this thing - no idea why even keep it up on OSX. You know you have a problem when not only do you put the software on every mac but you even place it on the Application tray at first launch and people still wont use it.

Yeah I agree. It's not bloated and runs very fast. Probably would be ok to use for awhile. Thinking about this, it probably has something to do with the Windows 8 disaster. Why would they want to support that for RT and Win8?

Well, "Windows 8" is really Windows 7 with Metro stuck on top, so the browser would run exactly the same. Apple supporting Metro by making a Metro browser would be a bad idea too.

I think this is primarily about the fact that with Chrome on Windows, there's no real reason to have Safari (as the article notes), but also because at this point, making the OS X desktop required for some of the more advanced iOS integration is only going to make Windows look bad and drive more people towards the Mac.

Windows as a consumer OS is definitely failing. Even people who like Windows and have no problem with it would probably seriously consider switching to OS X if the desktop OS doesn't integrate with their iOS devices now.

I think Apple is really trying hard to drive the emergent perception that "Windows is for work/corporate use" and OS X is for home/consumer use, and I think it's working.

about time they give up with this thing - no idea why even keep it up on OSX. You know you have a problem when not only do you put the software on every mac but you even place it on the Application tray at first launch and people still wont use it.

I use it and love it. Don't like firefox or opera. I don't mind chrome but safari is better and syncs with all my devices seemlessly and I use gestures on safari 50x a day. I pick that.

I use it and love it. Don't like firefox or opera. I don't mind chrome but safari is better and syncs with all my devices seemlessly. I pick that.

Me too. I don't know of many Mac users that don't use Safari as their primary browser. In fact, the only one I can think of that won't use it would prboably use Terminal and a text-baed browser with ASCII images if that were an option. 😷

This bot has been removed from circulation due to a malfunctioning morality chip.

Me too. I don't know of many Mac users that don't use Safari as their primary browser. In fact, the only one I can think of that won't use it would prboably use Terminal and a text-baed browser with ASCII images if that were an option. 😷

Lynx FTW! Great browser.

Those were the days, cruising the web in amber text on a tiny curved black screen.

I use Safari for Windows XP at work (yup...still on XP. That's the way education is going right now with budget cuts). The memory leaks are HORRENDOUS. There is one task that takes up an obscene amount of memory when Safari runs--webkit2webprocess.exe. Nothing works in terms of rectifying the problem.

I can only please one person per day. Today is not your day. Tomorrow doesn't look good either.

If only that were so. I get the impression they are laying the groundwork for a change of emphasis. Safari, iWork and iLife would become freebie apps as part of the operating system like Mail and Calender.

Not sure about the Pro app's. Can't remember the last time Logic and Aperture had major new versions and we all know what happened with FCP. If it was up to me I would spin them off into their Filemaker subsidiary so they at least get some attention.

Me too. I don't know of many Mac users that don't use Safari as their primary browser. In fact, the only one I can think of that won't use it would prboably use Terminal and a text-baed browser with ASCII images if that were an option. 😷

I just thought of something. If Google was fine with recording WiFi accounts, data and passwords when doing Street View drive-bys I wonder if they use Gmail accounts to take your username and password and use it with against other accounts that show up as new emails when you sign up. Unfortunately, most people use the same password for everything. I suggest 1Password for everyone using the internet for anything they want to keep secure. Make those passwords complex and unique.

This bot has been removed from circulation due to a malfunctioning morality chip.

Makes total sense. Safari is best used on an Apple OS Platform. Screw windows. Safari is ahead of its time any way. All those servers still running Java and Flash are behind the times and it's obvious that Microsoft still wants to hang on to the legacy internet multimedia software.

A shame. While the Apple's insistence on making Safari on Windows look like a mac application made it feel clunky and stand out like a sore thumb the developer tool set on it is by far the best of any browser.

Me too. I don't know of many Mac users that don't use Safari as their primary browser. In fact, the only one I can think of that won't use it would prboably use Terminal and a text-baed browser with ASCII images if that were an option. 😷

i'm a mac user (mac pro and three minis) and i use firefox as my primary browser (i use the bejesus out of it, actually.) in large part for the more granular cookie control and noscript. but every once in a while something isn't quite as expected and i'll use safari. (and no, i wouldn't use terminal and a text-baed browser with ascii images if that were an option!) i also use firefox on the several virtual machines i use fairly regularly (os x and windows).

Safari was released onto Windows because iOS (then iPhone OS) was only going to have mobile apps in the form of Web Apps. What better Windows-based SDK than the browser itself? Then Apple allowed people to create real apps and the Safari for Windows lost a good reason to exist.

Windows as a consumer OS is definitely failing. Even people who like Windows and have no problem with it would probably seriously consider switching to OS X if the desktop OS doesn't integrate with their iOS devices now.

Are there any stats to back that up? Last I knew, Windows was around 90% market penetration. How do you square that with Windows "failiing"?